


Moon Phases

by hisloss



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alive Hale Family, Alternate Universe - College/University, Derek and Stiles are Mates, Full Shift Werewolves, M/M, Magical Stiles Stilinski, Tutor Stiles
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-09-26
Updated: 2016-01-08
Packaged: 2018-04-23 10:54:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4874068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hisloss/pseuds/hisloss
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Stiles is hired to tutor Cora, of the Hale family. The Hale family that lives in the woods. The Hale family that is actually a pack of werewolves and would love to have Stiles for dinner... as a guest. </p><p>Cora's older brother Derek thinks he smells weird, which is unfortunate, because Stiles sort of has a crush on him?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Pack

Stiles walked up to the huge house on the preserve, a plastic craft caddy in hand, a couple of thick teacher’s edition textbooks under his other arm. He was nervous. It was his first day as a private tutor for Cora Hale. Cora needed help in math and science. She was going into the seventh grade, so Stiles had spent a few weeks researching the state standards for 7th grade math and science before applying to be her tutor through the university’s employment office. Talia was impressed that he’d taken time to put together a mini curriculum for her and approved after the second interview.

He rang the doorbell and shifted his weight anxiously from one foot to the other. The door opened abruptly and Stiles flinched. Cora’s older brother, Derek, stood there, taking up the entire door frame with his scowl and irritated demeanor. Derek was the history professor on campus – the youngest professor, and rumored to be among the toughest. Stiles had no idea that he still lived at home, but then, the Hales seemed pretty close knit from what he gathered during his interview.

Derek rolled his eyes and stepped aside. “Tutor’s here!” he called out, then turned away, muttering something under his breath that sounded like _He smells weird_. Stiles fumed. So he was a bit sweaty. It was August, and he was nervous. Derek led him into the kitchen and then left, his eyebrows cutting down, making his eyes darker.

“Stiles. You’re here early,” Talia greeted him. She had her hands elbow deep in a bowl of what looked like marinated red meat.

“Is Cora ready?” he asked.

“She’s waiting for you in the dining room,” Talia said brightly, lifting a steak from the bowl and slapping it down on the cutting board. “Just down the hall there on the left,” she gestured, picking up a meat tenderizer. Her hands were still bloodied. The effect was intimidating, though Talia hardly needed it. She was an average sized woman with dark hair and a perfect smile, but her eyes were sharp and intense. When she looked at him, Stiles felt as though she were analyzing him.

Cora lit up when he walked in. She had been part of the interview process and seemed to really like him.

“Hey, kiddo,” he said.

They spent that afternoon making graphs for algebraic expressions, using markers and glitter. Before he left he gave her a couple of worksheets to do and a fun coloring page he’d made a copy from one of his therapy coloring books.

He could have sworn he saw Derek lurking at the top of the stairs as he left, but he had more important things to think about. He was taking a full course load and had a lot of studying to do. He patted the head of one of the stone wolves in front of the house and drove back home to start dinner.

The next day as he was heading from one lab to the next, he got a call from Talia.

“Mrs. Hale,” he greeted as casually as he could. Was he being fired already?

“Just call me Talia, Stiles.”

“Right. Sure,” he nodded. “Is everything okay?” he mentally slapped himself for sounding so nervous.

“I forgot that tomorrow isn’t a good day for you to come to the house,” she explained coolly. “We agreed that you would come 3 days a week, but could you make a note somewhere that if one of those days falls on the full moon you don’t have to come? I’ll still pay you for the whole week, of course, it’s just that those days are reserved for religious observation.”

“Oh. Yeah. Sure.”

“Cora was very excited after you left. I’m sure we’ve made the right choice.”

“Thank you, Mrs. H – Talia,” he corrected himself.

“We’ll see you on Friday, then, dear,” she replied and hung up.

Religious observation? Stiles made a note on his phone to notify him 24 hours ahead of any full moon. What religions worshipped specifically on those days? Wiccans, maybe? He briefly entertained the thought of Derek Hale, hot young history professor with a reputation for being a hardass, as a practicing Wiccan. It didn’t add up. Whatever. He was going to be grateful that the Hales had hired him and respect their religious practices.

The only class he had with Scott was Biochemistry because it fit his forensic science major and Scott’s vetinary medicine one. It was a big class, and very participory, so there was enough time to get his best friend all caught up on his new job. Scott worked at a vetinary clinic in town, completely focused on his future career.

* * *

 

“Stiles, dear, we’d love it if you could stay for dinner on Friday,” Talia said as she saw him out the door on Wednesday. He’d been working with Cora for about two months and was starting to see a real improvement in her math skills, especially when he asked her to explain her answers.

“Yeah, sure,” he smiled openly and honestly. “I’d like that, thanks.”

He walked out to his jeep with a bounce in his step that lasted until midmorning the next day, when he started to get nervous. He liked the Hales, but they were his employers. It would be a social dinner, but he had to keep a professional attitude. He chose slightly nicer clothes than normal to wear on Friday. Fridays were usually their more relaxed days. They played a lot of games as soon as they finished reviewing, then discussed Cora’s science fair project. Since Stiles talked a lot about his dad’s work and his own interest in forensics, she wanted to do something with crime scene chemistry. When their hour and a half was up, Talia came in.

“Stiles, do you mind joining me in the kitchen? I’d like some company while I finish preparing dinner.”

Stiles organized his things neatly and followed her into the spacious kitchen. He mostly spent time in the dining room – which apparently wasn’t the dining room they were going to eat in – so he sometimes forgot how rich the Hales were. The house didn’t even look that big from the outside. But the kitchen was massive.

Talia has something cooking in the oven, and had prepared a salad as well. While she and Stiles chatted about Cora’s progress in math she carefully mixed a dressing. Occasionally Derek wandered into the kitchen for utensils and napkins. He greeted Stiles gruffly and hovered behind his mother for a few minutes before going back to set the table.

By the time Talia pulled the roast out of the oven, most of the Hale siblings had gathered around to help with drinks. The younger Hale children were really excited to meet Stiles. Normally, they only got to say hi on their way out the door to their various after school activities.

“Go tell your father dinner’s ready,” she shooed them all out.

“It must be cool to grow up with a lot of brothers and sisters,” Stiles said as their footfalls thundered on the stairs.

“We value family,” Talia agreed, hunting through the kitchen drawers. “I can never find the carving knife,” she explained, laughing. Derek brooded in the corner, wrapping freshly baked rolls. Laura, the oldest, rinsed plates. Yet neither of them flinched when Talia’s suddenly ripped through the roast with her bare hand. Derek only narrowed his eyes.

Stiles stared blankly. Talia’s hand was a claw. Slowly, it shifted back to a hand.

“Stiles, dear, won’t you help Laura carry the plates in?” she asked, as though nothing unusual had happened.

“S-sure,” the plates were heavy in his arms and he zoned out a little until he had been served. “You’re not going to eat me?”

Talia laughed. “We don’t eat humans.”

Stiles looked around at all of the Hales. Even Derek was smirking a little.

“Werewolves,” he said.

“Quick,” Laura noted.

“The whole ‘religious observation’ thing came to mind,” he explained sheepishly. Then, “Why let me know?”

“Well, we’ve grown to trust you,” Talia explained. “And I wanted to tell you before you began to get too suspicious.” The younger Hales started making very realistic wolf noises until Mr. Hale commanded them to settle down. “When I learned that your father was the sheriff, I was wary about hiring you, but Cora felt comfortable with you.”

“I won’t tell anyone, I promise.” He would hate to lose his job – not just because it payed well – and he was intrigued by the Hales.

“I know you won’t,” Talia assured him, not threateningly. “We’ve grown to trust you,” she repeated. “I invited you to dinner because we would like you to be part of our pack.”

“Part of your…” Stiles shot up from his chair and stumbled back. “No. I – I mean, that’s a nice offer, but I like being human?”

“Relax,” Derek muttered gruffly. “We’re not going to turn you. We want a human pack member.”

Maybe because it was the most Derek had ever said to him, or maybe because his voice was actually soothing despite how he was glaring at Stiles, he managed to relax and take his seat again.

“Why?” he said when he could finally speak.

“Our pack is actually quite small,” Talia explained. “And we don’t agree with packs outside our boarders about increasing our numbers by turning humans. My husband is a turned wolf, and I am born. We’re not certain our youngest will be able to shift at all. And yet, to hold Beacon Hills, we need a strong pack. I think adding humans to our ranks could be beneficial. Especially since your father is an authority in our territory.”

“Is that why you hired me?”

Talia’s face fell. “Oh, Stiles. No. I will admit that I was excited when you told me who your father was, but it was Cora’s choice to have you as a tutor. Before tonight, the decision to being a human into our pack was only being discussed between my husband and me. Regardless of your decision, we want you to continue tutoring Cora. But, should you choose to be a part of our pack, you would be helping us in a much bigger way.”

Stiles looked around the dinner table. Cora was sitting on the edge of her seat, eager. No one – aside from Derek, who always looked irritated by his presence – looked like they opposed the idea. “What exactly would be required of me?”

Talia seemed to relax. “You would keep tutoring Cora, naturally. You would spend full moons with us. But your main purpose would be to advise us on human cultural behavior.”

“You want me to teach you how to fit in with humans?”

“We manage, but we’d like to be a stronger, positive presence in the community.”

Derek rolled his eyes. “We’d also like to be notified of any weird cases that come through the sheriff’s department.”

“ _Derek_ ,” Laura hissed.

“If we want him to be pack, we can’t lie to him.” He actually held Stiles’s eyes. “Even if your father was someone else, we’d want you. But since he _is_ the sheriff, if you heard something that could alert us to hostile paranormals in our territory, you wouldn’t only be helping us.”

Stiles stared at him.

“We don’t expect your answer tonight, of course,” Talia rushed to say.

“I don’t have to think about it,” Stiles answered, just as quickly. “I accept.”

The younger wolves started making excited primal noises again and it took a while for them to settle.

“Are you sure?” Talia asked.

Stiles didn’t want to admit that what Derek had said had convinced him. “How could I refuse?” He smiled around at all of them.

The rest of the dinner went amazingly. Stiles had so many questions. Derek dismissed himself from the table early on the pretext of having papers to grade, but Stiles saw him hovering around on the landing when Talia walked him out the door.

“Full moon on Sunday, Stiles. Please be here by sundown.”

* * *

 

Stiles put on his most comfortable jeans, sneakers, and hoodie on Sunday afternoon. He made sure the turkey meatloaf was ready to go before he left, just reminded his dad to turn off the oven when the timer went off.

“And only one beer!” he called as he left. He monitored his dad’s diet very strictly, only allowing him indulgences once a month. The sheriff had had a tough week – nothing bizarre to report to the pack yet – and Stiles felt he was entitled to one drink while he enjoyed the healthy meatloaf and mashed potatoes plus a few hours of pre-season football.

It was a little unnerving to be driving out to the preserve as darkness approached. He was still a little scared, but he trusted Talia, and his curiosity got the better of him. As he got closer to the house, lights at the side of the road jumped out at him. He slowed down and saw that they were stone wolf sentinels, like the ones by the front door. Only these had lanterns in their mouths. Stiles felt comforted by them. Welcomed.

Talia greeted him at the door. “Go wait on the back porch, Stiles. We’ll be shifting soon.”

The back porch was huge, but Stiles went straight to the steps that led down to the natural ground. After a few minutes, Cora and the other young wolves came and sat with him.

“I haven’t been able to full shift yet,” Cora explained. “Maybe next year.”

The little ones couldn’t sit still, especially after the full mon appeared over the trees. They started howling at it, and piling all over Stiles.

“Hey,” Stiles, laughed, suddenly remembering something. “What do I smell like?” The question prompted several noses to turn up and even press into his hoodie.

“You smell like your car!” one little one declared.

“Metal,” said another.

“Curly fries,” said the youngest. “Like salt.”

“Do I smell bad?”

“I like how you smell!” Cora said defensively.

A low, melodic howl came from the house. All of the cubs went still.

“It’s time to run!” the smallest ones squealed. They all lined up at the bottom of the stairs.

The back door opened and Stiles gawked as the pack of wolves padded softly across the porch to him. They were huge – much bigger than normal wolves, and their eyes had a faint glow to them. They varied in color, but he was sure he recognized Talia from her eyes. They still had their piercing quality. They jumped from the porch onto the forest floor below and began to howl. Cora helped the littlest children climb onto their parents’ backs. “They could probably keep up, but we don’t want them to get lost,” she explained. She, Stiles, and four others remained on foot. Talia howled again, a high pitched, vibrato note, and then bolted. The others followed.

It was a long run, but Stiles didn’t notice. It was so exhilarating, running in the middle of the pack. A jet black wolf kept close to his side. He couldn’t tell who it was, and he was too out of breath to ask Cora. Every so often her face shifted, and she bolted a bit faster. Talia had explained at dinner that she was going through a hard time with the shift. Running was probably a good way to dispel the all of the energy she suddenly had. They ran all over the preserve. The little kids howled and Stiles joined in, laughing. When they finally came back to the house, they all flopped into a huge pile on the porch. Stiles settled next to Cora, up against the jet black wolf he still didn’t recognize. The Hale family had five adults and several teenagers, and he didn’t know them all by name yet. After a while, the wolves all went back into the house and the kids dragged Stiles into the kitchen, chanting for hot chocolate. Cora helped him put milk on the stove and then rinsed out a mug for everyone. Talia came into the kitchen, her cheeks flushed and her eyes bright. The rest of the pack soon followed. In their human forms again, the Hales were like any other normal family sharing hot chocolate before bed.

“Does anyone want to share?” Talia asked when everyone had their mug.

“That was the best run _ever_ ,” Cora’s younger brother intoned seriously. Everyone laughed.

“You say that every time,” Laura chided.

“And it’s true every time,” he protested back.

Cora talked about the moments where she felt herself shifting. “I was afraid,” she confessed. “I thought it was going to happen in the middle of the woods!”

Her feelings prompted stories from the teenagers about their first time fully shifting. One of her older brothers actually had shifted right before a run.

“Stiles, what did you think?” Talia asked.

“I loved it,” he said. “I felt like I could run forever.”

“You kept up pretty well. I thought we’d have to move a lot slower to keep you with us. Do you work out regularly?”

He shrugged. “I have a gym membership, and I try to use it, but no. It must have been adrenaline.”

He meant to ask about the jet black wolf before he left, but he decided not to. It was nice to think that someone in the pack had taken it upon themselves to look out for him.

* * *

 

The weekend after midterms, Scott came over and they spent all night Friday and most of the day Saturday playing video games.

Stiles and Talia had agreed that Cora had been working hard and deserved a week off from tutoring, too, but he was going over for dinner again on Monday night. His dad had been a little suspicious of Stiles spending so much time with the Hales until Stiles explained that he had a lot of friends within the family and he’d brought Talia to the station to volunteer to help with the department’s Thanksgiving Feast.

He’d run with the pack the weekend before and it had been just as thrilling as the first time. At the end, Cora had almost done a full shift and all the women in the pack hurried her to a big old tree at the edge of the property. Everyone had waited anxiously, but nothing. Cora had stormed up to her room without her hot chocolate, embarrassed and upset about disappointing everyone.

“She’ll be fine,” Talia assured Stiles before he left, full of hot chocolate and a warmth that he didn’t want to share with anyone because he was human. It had to be weird and abnormal to be feeling pack so soon? “She might even full shift next month. It was so close.”

Stiles brought all of Cora’s favorite math and science games their next session and a bouquet of flowers. “You’re going to be amazing, Cora. Whenever it happens,” he’d assured her, and he hugged him hard.

“I’m so glad you’re pack,” she’d said, and because he really wanted her to feel better, he agreed to invite Derek down to play games with him. He didn’t expect Derek to actually show, grumbling about how he definitely needed a break from grading midterm papers.

He still couldn’t figure Derek out. Everyone else was very accepting of him, but Derek hovered on the edge of conversation. He still wrinkled his nose up whenever he was in the same room as Stiles, so he couldn’t help but mistrust what the kids said. He kept meaning to ask Talia about it, but didn’t want to cause trouble. As far as he was concerned, even though he was pack, he probably ranked lowest.

Late Saturday afternoon, after Scott left for his date with Isaac, the doorbell rang. Hoping it was someone selling candy, Stiles dashed downstairs.

It was Derek.

Predictably, he wrinkled his nose. “You reek,” he said bluntly.

“Thanks,” Stiles grumbled, embarrassed. Had he known that Derek was coming by he would have showered thoroughly. He was convinced that the scent thing had to do with how he smelled when he showed up at the Hale’s. Usually it was after class and he probably exuded sweat, the fumes from his car, fast food (if he hadn’t eaten lunch), and like college student. Really attractive. “I spent the last two days celebrating the end of midterms with Scott. We didn’t take any breaks to shower.”

Derek’s eyes narrowed. “Whatever. Here. My mom asked me to bring you this.” He thrust a brown paper bag into Stiles’s arms and went back to his shiny black car like he couldn’t wait to be as far from him as possible. Stiles didn’t even have a minute to laugh about the mental image of Derek Hale, mother’s errand boy.

He took the paper bag into the kitchen, barely registering that it contained the Thanksgiving centerpiece for his approval, and pulled out his phone. This called for drastic measures.

* * *

 

The sheriff’s department worked in close communication with the homeless shelters in the area to hold the Beacon Hills Thanksgiving Feast every year. Stiles usually helped out with the kids’ table. This year, he was in charge of making sure the Hale pack got along with the humans. Meaning, no wolf noises at the table, no showing fangs, and no unusual displays of strength. He’d also made sure to catch them up on the most popular kids’ shows and games so that they’d have something good to add to the conversation and offered the incentive of a piggy back ride on their next run to whoever behaved themselves the best. The tactic worked perfectly; they were all on their best behavior, leaving Talia and the other adults free to mingle and help out.

While he took his shift serving the side dishes, he noticed that Derek – who’d probably been forced to attend – was surrounded by a group of young women. Some of them Stiles knew; daughters and sisters of his dad’s deputies. Derek looked bewildered, so much so that after laughing quietly to himself for a solid minute, he handed his serving spoon to Parrish and went over to rescue him (or be his wingman). The hall was loud, but as he sidled up to the group, he heard only part of what Derek was saying.

“…someone in my life.”

The women tittered nervously and apologized, cooing over how sweet his loyalty was before dispersing.

“I had no idea you were dating anyone,” Stiles said.

Derek stared at him. His nostrils flared. “What the hell are you wearing?”

“Cologne,” Stiles defended. “I thought that since you hate the way I smell –“

“I don’t hate it,” Derek interrupted. “It’s just that your scent is… different.” He wrinkled his nose. “I can still kind of smell it under that.”

“Sorry,” Stiles muttered sarcastically under his breath.

“Whatever.”

“So… are you having fun?” Stiles asked. Derek shrugged. “Why didn’t you bring your girlfriend?”

Derek glared at him. “I’m not exactly dating them.” He hesitated a moment. “Don’t tell anyone.”

Stiles lit up. “A secret crush?”

Derek rolled his eyes. “Something like that.”

Stiles resisted the urge to ask for details or offer help. Instead, he went back to the kids’ table to check on the Hales and entertained himself the rest of the night thinking about what the mystery crush was like. He even started thinking of anyone who fit the profile. Most likely it was someone Derek worked with since he had no social life.

* * *

 

It hadn’t been easy, but Stiles managed to arrange his spring semester so that he had the same days free for tutoring as his last semester. He and his dad had had an argument about him compromising his studies to keep the job, but Stiles managed to convince him that he was still on track with his academic plan.

He and Talia had agreed to give Cora a few weeks off of tutoring so that she could recharge for school, too, but he continued to go to the Hales’, telling his dad that Talia had “odd jobs” for him to do. Mostly it was just learning about the pack, so he felt guilty getting paid, but Talia insisted, since the drive was out of his way. The Friday before Christmas he got to the door and was momentarily startled. Derek was usually there to let him in, not that he’d gotten any more sociable and still made a face that Stiles knew had to do with his scent. Stiles assumed that Derek heard him coming and had come to expect him at the door. He actually had to ring the bell, and when Laura answered, she looked as bewildered as he did, but just stepped aside. The further into the hallway Stiles got, though, his uneasiness grew. In the car, he thought it was because he felt like he was coming over uninvited, even though Talia had made it perfectly clear that the pack wanted him around as much as possible. When Derek wasn’t there to scowl at him and mutter about his smell before calling out to the entire house that he’d arrived, he felt suddenly tense at the back of his neck.

Talia greeted him, but he barely registered her. Despite the chill, the back door was open. He went out to the porch and suddenly found himself running into the woods. Vaguely, he heard Laura calling for him, but he kept running. It was still light out, but just barely.

He reached a sunken in clearing about a mile from the house and felt his heart stop. Someone was there, sprawled on the ground. Stiles lurched forward and fell onto his knees, clawing at the dead leaves to get to them.

It was Derek.

His body was cold to the touch and his eyes were wide open, glowing. Stiles heaved, lifting one of Derek’s arms around himself. He was stiff, but strangely light. Panicking, he started back toward the house and minutes later they were at the porch. The pack descended upon them. Talia pulled a blanket around him and stroked his face. Laura reached out and touched his arm. Everyone in the pack put their hands on him. Stiles was dizzy. He wanted to suggest an ambulance, but then Derek shuddered and started taking big deep breaths. Color came back to his face and his eyes faded to normal.

Talia and her husband ushered him inside and then Stiles was being bombarded with questions. Where had be found Derek? How was he able to carry him back all on his own? Once he’d answered the first questions, the adults – Talia’s sister in law and her two siblings – went to investigate. Laura took charge and organized the teens and children into committees to finish setting the table for dinner and finish preparing the side dishes.

When they all sat down to dinner, Talia still looked a little rattled, but she smiled.

“Derek is fine. He won’t be able to come down to dinner, though. He needs his rest.”

“It was fae,” Talia’s sister said when everyone asked about what they’d seen in the woods. “A ring. We were lucky that Stiles inadvertently broke it.”

The rest of dinner was quiet. When Talia walked him to the door, she asked him how he knew where to go.

“I just had a feeling?” he said vaguely. Talia stared at him and he squirmed. “Derek always opens the door for me, and when he didn’t, I felt weird, and the back door was open. I just started running until I found him.”

“You broke a farie ring, Stiles.”

“I had no idea it was even there.”

“Derek thinks you might have a spark, and I’m inclined to believe him.”

“A spark?”

“Of magic. Some humans have it. I’m going to invite our emissary to dinner next week so that he can have a look at you.”

He drove home jittery. Having a spark sounded exciting, and he started to fantasize about being able to harness it and really help the pack. He hoped that if he did have some magic in him, that’s what Derek was smelling on him.

* * *

 

The next week was the week before Christmas. Stiles had bought gifts for everyone in the pack. For the teens he’d bought iTunes cards. The youngest were all getting coloring books and DVDs. For the adults he bought date night packages – boxes of chocolate and gift cards for restaurants and cinema. For Cora, since she was his student, he bought an old school science kit. Laura and her older brother were getting faux leather covers for their iPads. He’d meant to get Derek the same thing, but for some reason he’d gravitated to a thick tartan throw blanket. He left the gifts in the car, planning to get Cora to help him sneak them in later.

Derek opened the door for him and Stiles was relieved to see he was fully recovered. Instead of announcing his arrival and then skulking off, though, Derek stopped him just inside the doorway, putting his hand on Stiles’s shoulder.

“Hey, I wanted to say thanks,” he said softly.

“Um, yeah. No problem,” Stiles said. He felt a little dizzy. Derek being so close to him was overwhelming. He smelled nice. The difference in height between them wasn’t that big, but Derek’s shoulders were wider and Stiles couldn’t understand how he’d been able to carry him for a mile without help.

“Stiles,” Derek said.

“Huh? Sorry. Spaced out,” he laughed nervously and backed away.

Derek actually smiled. “I said I’m glad you’re pack.”

Stiles stared at him. “Yeah. Me, too.” He watched Derek walk back up the stairs and groaned. Always getting crushes on unattainable, hot, intelligent types. Derek Hale. Smiling at him. It had been almost easy to shut out his obvious attraction, but then Derek always seemed to know what Stiles meant and answered his questions best at dinner and now this. No wonder he didn’t smile more often. He looked a lot less tough.

He was so busy trying to shake the smile from his memory that he didn’t notice Scott’s boss standing in the kitchen with Talia.

“Stiles, you know Alan.” He shook Deaton’s hand. “He’s our emissary.”

“Wait. What.”

Deaton smirked. “I was pleased when Talia told me that you’d accepted to be a part of her pack.”

“Deaton is here to read you, Stiles.”

“To find out if I have a spark.”

“It’s not a complicated process at all,” Deaton assured him. “It will only take a minute.” He took something out of his pocket; a handkerchief. When he unfolded it, a simple round stone sat in his palm. “Touch this.”

Stiles pressed his fingers to it.

“Are you feeling anything? Does it burn?”

“No.”

Rather than look disappointed, Deaton wrapped it up, said “Good!” then asked him to close his eyes. Stiles felt something ghost over his lids and then, vividly, lightning flashed behind them.

“Well, he has something,” Deaton was saying. “I’m not sure what we can do with it yet, but there’s a definite possibility his magic reacted and broke the ring.”

“Does magic have a smell?” Stiles interrupted.

“If it had, Talia wouldn’t have needed me to read you.”

“Why do you ask?” Talia had a concerned look on her face.

“Derek,” Stiles explained, and his voice shook a little. “He says I smell weird, and he told you that I might have a spark.”

Talia and her emissary shared a look. “He might have felt something when the ring broke,” Talia explained. “And you don’t smell weird.”

“Yeah, the kids told me,” he smiled bashfully.

They had a nice dinner and then Stiles got to watch the whole pack be surprised when they walked into the main living room and saw all of the presents under the tree. He’d snuck Cora his car keys while he helped set the table and everyone was washing up. And then he got another surprise when Cora gave him a gift from all of them: a gorgeous jacket that was light enough to wear on full moon runs, a gift card for video games, and – a late addition – a book of simple spells.

* * *

 

He made the mistake of using the spark around Scott the week after Christmas. One of the spells was a barrier, and it took almost no effort to construct one in his doorway. Scott bounced off it and Stiles laughed so hard he told Scott he understood what an asthma attack felt like. Luckily, Scott wasn’t smart enough to be suspicious. Instead, he listened patiently to Stiles’s woes about having a crush on Derek.

“Well, at least you don’t have to see him for two weeks?” Scott attempted to console him.

They spent three days playing video games and watching movies before Scott went away for a weekend with Isaac. Stiles wandered around the house in his underwear grumbling about how his best friend ditched him. (Actually, he was happy for Scott. He hadn’t liked Isaac all that much at first but at least he respected his and Scott’s bro time.) Finally he got bored enough that he started putting protection spells on all of his dad’s uniforms. He was just noticing that he didn’t have any clean laundry himself when the doorbell rang. He grumbled some more and then went to answer it, hoping it was carolers or something.

It was Derek.

Stiles immediately invited him in, embarrassed, and then bolted upstairs to put on whatever clothes he could find, then apologized because he probably smelled.

“McCall here?” Derek asked stiffly.

“He was. He left yesterday for San Francisco with his boyfriend.”

Derek blinked. “His boyfriend?”

“Yeah. Isaac. I think he was in one of your classes last semester? Tall. Wears a scarf no matter the temperature.”

“I remember him. So you and McCall aren’t…?”

Stiles stared at him, confused. “Scott is my best friend,” he said slowly.

“I misinterpreted that,” Derek said, and he actually sounded embarrassed.

“Can I get you something to drink? What’s up?”

“Whatever’s fine,” Derek followed him into the kitchen. “My mom sent me over because we think there’s a violent supernatural in the area and we were hoping you could look into your dad’s recent case files. We’re looking for anything related to assaults happening at night clubs.”

Stiles fixed them a couple of hot chocolates and then brought his laptop down. It took him almost twenty minutes to hack into the police records, but he was able to find everything Talia had asked for. As a bonus, Derek sat next to him on the couch the entire time and smiled at him before he left. Stiles texted Scott as soon as he was gone.

DEREK THOUGHT YOU AND I WERE DATING. I MIGHT BE HALLUCINATING BUT I THINK HE WAS JEALOUS.

Scott texted back an hour later: DUDE!!!!!!

And he allowed himself to get his hopes up for the rest of the day, channeling the exciting energy into housework.

* * *

 

Two days after Derek asked for the information, Stiles got a call while he was getting ready to leave for the full moon run.

“Stiles, we’re not going to run tonight,” Talia informed him. “But if you wouldn’t mind coming over, we’d really appreciate it.”

He was curious, but decided to hold his questions for when he got to the house. Instead of Derek answering the door, he was bombarded by all the little kids, plus Cora. “What’s going on? Where is everyone?” he asked.

“They’re shifting,” Cora explained. “Mom wants to know if you can babysit.”

“The reports you managed to get for us were very telling,” Talia cut in, appearing in the hallway. Her eyes were glowing red. “I had my brother and a few of the older kids investigate the reported crime scenes and they smelled incubi. We’re going now to deal with it.”

“Deal with it?” Stiles asked. “You’re not going to kill someone, are you?”

“Not someone,” she clarified. “Some _thing_. Just as we are more than human, so is this.”

Stiles kept the kids entertained by watching the movies he’d bought them at Christmas. Cora had a few moments where she thought she was shifting and Stiles panicked, but beyond her eyes glowing and her claws coming out, nothing happened and he wrapped her in a blanket to calm her down. It got so late that Stiles had to help six squirming werewolf cubs into bed. By midnight, Cora felt safe enough to unwrap herself and go to her own bed. She wasn’t sleepy, though, and they sat up by her window, which overlooked the backyard. Fortunately, they didn’t have to wait long. Just before one in the morning, they saw a dark mass leap up onto the porch.

He followed Cora down to the kitchen and they welcomed everyone back.

“Is everyone okay?” Stiles asked.

“Just a few scratches,” Talia assured them. “How were the cubs?”

“Cora scared me a couple of times, but no full shift yet.”

Laura, her aunt, and one of the male cousins had a few shallow cuts. Stiles offered to try out his healing spell and it worked amazingly well.

“You can stay the night if you like, Stiles,” Talia offered.

“My dad will be home in an hour, and my alibi is out of town,” he shrugged.

“You’re tired, though. At least let me send you an escort?”

“Sure, thanks.”

She hugged him. “I know that this is difficult for you. And you can leave, if it’s too much.”

“I’m not leaving you guys.”

She looked relieved. “Derek will follow you home and make sure you’re safe.” Stiles felt his heart speed up.

* * *

 

Spring semester started up, and Stiles gave Cora another week off so he could adjust to his new schedule and she started to show signs of approaching a full shift. He now had a class that got out just before Derek’s class came into the same lecture hall, so he got to see him. He pulled Stiles over before he reached the door to tell him how Cora was doing and if she was feeling well enough for tutoring a couple of times those first few weeks of classes, and Stiles absolutely reveled in the jealous stares he got from Derek’s students, who had never seen him have a friendly conversation with anyone.

Early February, Cora shifted for the first time. It was a pretty awesome moment. Stiles couldn’t watch the actual transformation because the women had to take her into the mudroom behind the kitchen and undress. When she came out, she nearly knocked him over. She looked a lot like Talia's wolf form, but smaller, and with golden eyes instead of deep red. That night, she ran the fastest and it was a very special moment for her. They stayed out later than usual. Stiles was so happy for her that he didn’t even realize how tired he was. He had two cups of hot chocolate and politely declined coffee.

The little kids wanted a story before bed and he complied, tired as he was. Before he left he decided to borrow a book from Talia’s private library. She had only a few books that she deemed accurate enough to werewolf experience, passed down to her from her family and gifted to her from other alphas, but she’d insisted that Stiles could borrow them at any time.

As he approached the study door, he noticed that it was ajar. Light was spilling out.

“ – said it’s not that strong of a spark. There’s no way he should be able to do everything he does,” Talia whispered frantically.

Stiles froze.

“There’s something you’re not telling me, Derek. Deaton said there was another possibility and I know you knew what he meant.”

Derek mumbled something. Stiles worried that they would hear him, but he could feel the tension flooding the room.

“Stiles said you told him he smells weird,” Talia continued, prodding gently now.

Derek mumbled something else.

“Derek?”

“He’s my mate!” Derek said, louder.

Stiles stumbled back, disturbing the end table, knocking a few of the carved wolf figurines to the floor. He was sure the whole house had heard it. Blindly scooping them up and putting them back, hands shaking, he listened for footsteps and then fled, thankful that no one stopped him as he left the house and got into his car. He wasn’t sure how he got home. All he knew were the words echoing in his head over and over until they didn’t make any more sense than the first moment he’d heard them.

 

 


	2. Bond

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So there might be more to this than I originally planned...

Stiles felt trapped. He spent the next couple of days thinking about calling Talia and saying he was sick, but he knew he couldn’t do that to Cora. She’d already had three weeks off for winter break and then another week off at the beginning of February. Her math lessons were getting harder and she’d done so well at the science fair that everyone expected a lot from her.

So he went.

Derek didn’t open the door for him, but this time Stiles didn’t feel weird. He felt relieved. Cora didn’t seem to know anything was up, so they proceeded with their lessons as usual. Afterward, Laura walked him to the door. Either she didn’t know about what was going on, or she was doing her best to stay out of the situation. Everyone else was the same, even Talia. Stiles felt as though a time bomb had been attached to his throat. He wasn’t sure whether asking about what he’d heard would set it off or diffuse it.

“Are you okay?” Scott asked him after class.

He’d been staring in the direction of Derek’s office.

“Remember how I said that Derek might be into me?”

Scott’s brow furrowed. “Did he reject you?”

“It’s complicated.”

Scott pulled him by the arm toward the parking lot. “Curly fries. I’m buying.”

They went to Stiles’s favorite diner and sat in their favorite booth. Thankfully, they’d arrived long after the lunch rush and before dinner. “The Hales are werewolves,” Stiles began, because Scott wasn’t very bright, so it was best to talk to him as honestly as possible.

Scott started to laugh and then just stared when he realized that Stiles wasn’t laughing with him.

“Wait. Seriously?” He fiddled with the paper wrapper from his straw. Suddenly understanding, he sat up straight. “Is that why you always go to their house on the full moon? Are you – did they - ?”

“No. I’m still human. I’m part of their pack, though.” He grabbed a handful of curly fries to keep himself from talking about the spark. “A couple of weeks ago, Derek…”

“Did he hurt you?” Scott’s asymmetrical jaw became more pronounced as he narrowed his eyes.

“No. I… he said I’m his mate.”

“His mate.” Scott deadpanned.

“I don’t even get what that means. I thought he was jealous of you because he was into me, but now I think he was just being possessive.”

“Have you talked to him about it?”

“No.”

“You should. I can go with you?” He picked at his food. “Are you going to get in trouble for telling me?”

“Maybe,” Stiles shrugged. “But I think Talia will understand. I’ve told her how close we are.”

Scott grinned and took a bite of his burger. “Womb to tomb.”

* * *

 

“Hey, Laura,” Stiles greeted. “Um, Scott drove me here today. I thought Cora would like to meet him and since it’s games day we could use a third player.”

“Nice to meet you, Scott. Stiles has told us a lot about you.” Laura shook his hand warmly.

“Is, uh… Derek around?”

“I saw him head upstairs earlier.”

“Cora’s in the dining room, Scott. Start playing the chemical bonds game. I’ll be there in a minute. I just needed to ask him something.”

Scott took the supplies and disappeared down the hall.

“Stiles, is everything okay? You smell anxious. Nervous, even,” Laura spoke quietly.

Stiles had only been upstairs to put the younger cubs to bed, so he didn't know where to start looking. It was a big house; it looked smaller out front than it was because it stretched back into the woods. Eventually he had to double back to keep from getting lost. He turned the corner to go back into the main hallway at the top of the stairs and nearly ran into Derek. He was mostly wrapped up in the tartan blanket Stiles had given him for Christmas and was balancing a tall stack of papers. His hair was disheveled.

"Aren't you supposed to be with Cora?" he asked, not coldly.

"I wanted to ask you something."

The way Derek's expression slackened, Stiles could tell he knew what it was about. It should have made him angry, because Derek obviously felt guilty. Instead, it made him more nervous. Derek's fingers tightened around the corner of the blanket at his hip. He looked like he was going to make an excuse about having work to do.

"I heard what you said to your mom. About me," he opened hesitantly.

Derek pulled the blanket tighter to himself, defensive, and started to turn away. Stiles felt all of his nervous energy rise up.

"Derek - "

A crash downstairs interrupted him. Immediately they both headed toward the sound, Derek throwing his ungraded papers down on the kitchen table. Shouting was coming from the dining room. In one corner, Laura and Cora struggled to hold their mom back. Talia's eyes were glowing. In the other corner, Scott stood flat against the wall, just staring at her. Derek went to help Laura restrain his mom. Taxed to her limit of strength, Cora collapsed on the ground but thankfully remained conscious. Stiles grabbed at Scott and started pulling him away.

"What are you doing?!" he cried out. Scott tore his eyes away from Talia and stumbled after him, to the kitchen. Talia's brother and her two nephews ran down the hallway behind them.

"She just... when she saw me..." Scott tried to explain.

"You need to get him out of here," Derek appeared, carrying Cora. "I don't know why, but mom can't control herself right now. She's going to bite him."

* * *

 

On Saturday, Stiles was making lunch to take to his dad when he got a text message from Cora: _pack meeting tonight_.

He went to the station and tried to keep busy the rest of the day, wondering what the meeting was about and if Talia was okay.

After nightfall, the stone wolf sentinels were lit again, but this time they seemed ominous rather than welcoming.

Cora opened the door for him. "It's adults only," she pouted, the stomped off to join her siblings and cousins in the den.

Talia sat at the head of the huge dining table. She looked weak; her husband was holding her hand and murmuring soothing things.

Derek and Laura sat together, engrossed in their own conversation. Derek looked angry and Stiles suddenly felt sick. They didn't want him around anymore. That had to be it.

He sat sat down cautiously and waited.

"I wanted to apologize for the other day, Stiles," Talia said softly.

"No, it was my fault. I should have asked permission to bring Scott,"Stiled rushed to correct her. Relief was starting to build at the pit of his stomach, but he ignored it.

"Maybe so, but I... " she trailed off, unable to explain.

"My mom is a strong alpha," Derek cut in. "She can be in crowds of humans without losing her composure. What happened the other day was a fluke. Sometimes - and it's rare - an alpha will encounter a human that they are strongly compelled to turn because they know that human would be a good addition to their pack." Stiles wanted to be annoyed that Derek was always the one who was able to explain things so honestly to him, but as always, it was Derek's tone that calmed him.

"It's very hard to resist," Talia added. "Your friend's scent is highly compatible with our pack's."

"Are you going to turn him?"

"Not without his consent. Still, it would be better if you kept him away from our family for a while."

Stiles nodded. "Yeah. Okay."

Everyone was silent. Uneasily so.

"Mom wants you to try and convince him to accept the bite," Derek spoke up. Talia flinched and Laura looked like was about to hit him.

Stiles tensed.

"We wanted you to be a part of our pack for a lot of reasons, but lately you've proven to be a real asset, and bringing someone into our home who has the potentate expand our pack in a big way is something we can't ignore." 

Laura lunged at him the same instant Stiles stood up, knocking his chair to the floor. Derek absorbed the brunt of her attack, but pushed her away with enough force that she cracked the glass of the thick window pane overlooking the back deck.

"We can't ask him to do that!" she hissed.

"I'm not asking him!" Derek defended. "He has the right to know what we're thinking where he's concerned. What he does is up to him. No one’s forcing him." He turned to Stiles, who was shaking enough that he could feel his spark throbbing in his fingertips. "Telling McCall about this is your choice. Nothing will happen if you don't. We're still pack."

Stiles picked up his chair and sank into it. For a long time he just sat with his head down, his arms over his head. Finally he looked up and addressed Talia.

"He's going to ask. And I'm not going to keep anything from him. I don't know how he'll respond and I can't promise I won't try to dissuade him because he's like my brother and even though I trust you - I trust this pack - I don't want - "

"I understand."

Slowly, the tension leaked out of the room.

"I should probably get home now," Stiles muttered.

"There's something else," Derek said, and it was obvious from the way everyone looked at him that it was unplanned. Derek stood up. "Stiles is my mate."

The reactions around the table varied. Talia's sisters in law looked excited, her husband perplexed. Laura looked to her mom, who was calm.

"Since when have you - ?" someone asked. Stiles felt the room tilt. He couldn't look anyone in the eye. He felt equally embarrassed and angry. The only thing restraining him was knowing that Derek had to explain himself now.

"Before Christmas," Derek answered. "After he ran with us the second time."

"What does that mean?" Stiles asked.

 Everyone went still.

"What are you asking, Stiles?" Talia prodded.

" _Mate_. What does that mean?"

One of Derek's aunts answered. "It's rare, but some wolves have them. It's a person who is compatible to them to the point where being around each other makes them stronger."

"I still don't get it."

This time, it was Derek who answered. "Our biochemistry matches. Something about me and something about you fits together. Usually humans aren't mates for Wolves, so I can't really - if you were a wolf, too, you'd be able to sense it the way I do. Didn't it seem suspicious to you that you could keep up with us when we run?"

Stiles looked down at the table, chagrined.

"The faerie ring," Laura murmured. "You knew Derek was in trouble."

"And just now," Derek's father added. "Would you have attacked Laura if she'd hurt Derek?"

Stiles lifted his hand from his lap and put it on the table. The last of his unbidden energy jumped from it and cracked open the air. Laura’s eyes widened.

"Protection," Derek said. "Mates are driven to protect each other for the survival of the pack. It's a survival thing."

Stiles started at him. "You said I smelled weird," he accused. "Is it because - ?"

"That's what made me suspect," Derek answered tersely.

Again, Stiles put his head down and had to quiet his thoughts.

"I still don't get it," he said. "What's going to happen now?"

"Nothing. You don't have to accept the bond. Nothing is compelling you to actually take on the responsibility of being my mate," Derek answered, avoiding his eyes.

Stiles felt his blood run cold. He should have felt relief. He had a choice. No one had mentioned anything about a romantic connection.

"But Derek - " Talia sounded much stronger than she had earlier, when the meeting began.

" _Nothing_ ," Derek repeated tightly. He probably regretted having brought it up.

"What? What are you not telling me?" Stiles demanded.

"A wolf whose bond is rejected... I've only every heard of it happening once," Derek's aunt whispered.

"Is it bad?" Stiles heard his voice pitching up. "What's going to happen to him if I reject the bond?"

"It's not bad," Derek insisted.

 "He might not be able to shift anymore," Talia explained. 

"I _might_ not," Derek emphasized. "I might just get weaker. It's not like I'll die."

"Will anything happen to me?"

"You're not a wolf, and you'd be the one doing the rejecting, so there's no way of knowing. You definitely won't be able to run with us anymore, though."

"Would I still be pack?"

"That's up to you."

"It's really just part of me being more of an asset, isn't it?" Stiles tried to keep the bitterness out of his voice.

"It would benefit the pack," Talia supplied.

"What would happen if I did...?"

"We would notice an increase in strength. You'd still be able to run with us. Your spark might last a lot longer than Deaton said it would. Or nothing. We've known some mated pairs but it varies for all of them."

Stiles got up and paced the length of the dining table. It was hard to fight down the weird ache he was feeling. It all sounded so technical. Tactical. Impersonal. But it would help the pack. 

"Ok. I'll accept it. What now?" 

Derek stared at him. "You're sure?"

"It sounds like well only benefit from it. You. Me. The pack."

Laura rushed out of the room, calling behind her, "Everyone needs to be here for this!"

"What does she mean?" Stiles asked, panicked.

"The bonding," Talia smiled.

Stiles had a fleeting vision of some kind of ceremony. "What does that entail, exactly?" he asked nervously.

"It's nothing weird, I promise," Derek said. "We just all need to be together." Laura gathered the kids and everyone went out to the deck. They all formed a circle around Derek and Stiles. It was pretty surreal. "Here," Derek held out his hand like they were going to shake and Stiles took it. "Don't let go." Stiles nodded. A moment later he felt a surge of adrenaline. His spark burned. 

Later, after a pack dinner that Stiles barely remembered agreeing to, Talia pulled him aside.

"Thank you, Stiles. You don't know what this means for all of us. Your bond was so strong that we all felt it."

 Stiles stared down at his feet, embarrassed. What he'd felt was an overwhelming love for Derek and the need to protect him. Love. It made him dizzy. Sure, he'd acknowledged that his crush on Derek was on the strong side, but the bond had forced him to see it for what it truly was. He loved Derek, and it hurt more than normal heartbreak to think that Derek didn't feel that same way. He certainly wasn't treating him much differently than before.

On the drive home he felt strangely numb.

* * *

 

Scott came to find him after class on Monday, which he'd skipped.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

Stiles had been in bed all day. An untouched bowl of cereal sat on his nightstand and his computer was open to a random search about werewolves.

Stiles grunted and rolled over.

"Um... so about the other day? When Mrs. Hale nearly ate me?" Scott broached carefully. Stiles grunted again. "Did you figure out what's going on?"

Stiles rolled over and threw his legs over the side. "Yeah. They want you to join their pack. Talia thinks you would make a great beta."

"Hm." Scott sat on the floor and reached for the TV remote and one of the game controllers. "Do you think I should?"

Stiles sat up so fast the room spun. He groaned and sank to the floor, ignoring the controller Scott passed him. Onscreen, Scott was choosing a make to play.

"Dude. This is a major life decision. You're asking me if I think you should become a werewolf."

"Well, they're your pack."

"Back in high school I would have said hell yes," Stiles assured him. "But it's actually pretty dangerous. I don't know all the specifics, but the Hales are in some kind of turf war with the paranormal things in the area and I don't know how I'd explain things to your mom if you died fighting trolls or wendigo or whatever."

They played video games for a few hours before Scott asked the next big question. "Did you talk to Derek?"

Stiles threw the controller and went in search of food.

* * *

 

The next day, Scott’s bike was parked in the Hale’s driveway when Stiles got there to tutor Cora. He panicked until he saw him sitting on the front porch.

“What. Are you doing here?”

“I came to talk to Mrs. Hale.”

“Scott, no.”

“What? You said it’s my choice, right?”

“This is a really big deal, Scott.”

“I know. I’m gonna do it.”

Stiles felt his stomach turn over. He imagined Scott, bleeding. Going through the pain of shifting for the first time. “Please don’t do this.”

Derek opened the door.

“Mom wants to know why Scott’s here.”

“I accept the consequences,” Scott said.

“For the record, I don’t approve of this,” Stiles cut in. “Scott. Think about this.”

“I have been,” Scott said simply. He walked past Derek into the house. Stiles made to follow him, but Derek reached out and grabbed him.

“It’s okay. We can leave them alone. Mom can control herself now.” He led Stiles upstairs to a room that was cluttered with books and papers. A long desk wrapped a corner of the room. “I do all my work here because it’s closer to the kitchen.”

Stiles shoved some papers aside and sat down. “I don’t _want_ Scott to be a werewolf. I don’t want him to be in danger.”

“I promise you he won’t be.” Derek started sorting through the papers on his desk. Downstairs was quiet, but Derek could hear everything and started giving him some updates, stuff like “Being an alpha, she can tell that he’ll take the bite well” and “Now she’s talking about what the immediate side effects will be” then, “My dad’s going to talk to him now. He’s the only turned wolf in our pack, so he remembers what it was like”. They went downstairs after that and saw that most of the pack had assembled in the dining room. Cora had her homework spread out in front of her and Stiles suddenly felt a stab of guilt for forgetting why he was really there.

“Scott has decided to join our pack,” Talia announced. There was a general murmur of positive agreement all around and Stiles slowly felt his fear dissipating. Scott stayed for dinner and everyone answered his questions. Before they left, Talia set the next full moon for Scott’s turn and the panic flooded back through Stiles’s veins.

“Are you sure about this, man?” he asked during class the next day. The next full moon was irritatingly close.

“I talked to Mr. Hale about it. He was younger than us when he turned. Like, fourteen. Nothing he said changed my mind.”

“Why are you really doing this?”

“For you. And my mom. And because…” he hesitated. “That day? When Mrs. Hale tried to attack me? I didn’t run because I wasn’t really scared. I think I would have let her bite me then.”

* * *

 

The ceremony, such as it was, took place on the deck. Talia remarked how it was starting to become a sacred place for the pack. Since it was a Thursday night, Stiles had told his dad that he’d be spending the night at Scott’s until Saturday to start studying for their midterm. Scott’s mom was working late shifts and wouldn’t notice that they weren’t around. Scott rolled up the sleeve of his left arm and let Talia sink her teeth into his skin. Stiles and Derek held him steady, Derek easily leeching the pain away. Another benefit of the bond, Stiles learned. There were a lot of benefits, apparently.

Once Scott had calmed down enough, Stiles took him into the mudroom. Scott stripped down and hang onto his arm as he started to convulse. His back arched. Talia had explained to him that he had to give into it but find something to anchor his humanity to. Hair started to poke out through his skin. His breaths came heavier. Stiles tried to talk him through it, reminding him that he might not full shift the first time. He could feel the rest of the pack waiting anxiously on the other side. Scott fell to his knees and shuddered. His wolf fur shook onto him effortlessly. His eyes were glowing yellow and he bumped his head affectionately against Stiles’s knee.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm so into soulmate AUs you don't' even know. I've had this idea rolling around for a while and I'm excited to finally post it.


End file.
